Senior Researcher

We are the Metropolitan Council
, the regional government for the seven‑county Twin Cities metropolitan area. We plan 30 years ahead for the future of the metropolitan area and provide regional transportation, wastewater, and housing services.

We are committed to supporting a diverse workforce that reflects the communities we serve.

The Community Development division is responsible for the Council's regional long‑range planning efforts; planning and technical assistance to local governments; planning for and funding the regional parks and open space system; delivering rent assistance through the Metropolitan Housing and Redevelopment Authority; and delivering the Livable Communities Act grant programs.

The Community Development Research department collects, disseminates, and analyzes quantitative and qualitative data about demographic trends and inequities, development patterns, climate change, parks visitation, long‑range forecasts, and the regional economy. We believe research can improve the lives of residents in our region and see our skills, creativity, and platforms as resources to further shared understanding about regional issues that matter.

This position is part of the Strategy and Product Design team, a specialized group within the research department. We center people, integrate equity, and transform technical information into accessible content through—and by—design. We serve as an in‑house information design and user experience (UX) consultancy for the division’s regional planning departments in addition to maintaining a portfolio of applied research projects.

The Senior Researcher will directly support the research department’s mission to provide relevant, timely, and accessible data about the Twin Cities region to the public and organization. This is not a typical government research position. All team members are skilled information designers and trained in user experience (UX) design principles and product thinking to build and support digital experiences.

The Senior Researcher will use strong quantitative skills to carry out applied research about the region’s people and places, generating internal data assets (like outcome‑focused measures) and well‑designed, public content. This position will also play an integral role in delivering and managing digital products. Generally, this work involves:

• Contributing to the team’s user experience research (UXR) program by conducting interviews, facilitating usability testing, and writing data collection tools such as surveys; and/or
• Hands‑on development of web‑based interactive applications using tools like Tableau, R Shiny, and ESRI GIS.

The initial balance of these responsibilities will be based on the Senior Researcher’s experience. The best‑qualified candidate will have a solid foundation in applied quantitative or mixed‑method research and demonstrable communication and design skills used to effectively share research with diverse audiences.

This position is eligible for a hybrid (both remote and onsite) telework arrangement. The candidate’s permanent residence must be in Minnesota or Wisconsin.

• Lead and/or coordinate applied research projects in partnership with policy, planning, and research staff: define objectives, determine methods, analyze data, validate findings, and share results with internal project teams and external audiences.
• Apply data visualization best practices to translate complex research concepts and findings into usable, accessible static and interactive digital content for diverse audiences.
• Conduct user experience research, such as writing primary data collection instruments (interview protocols, surveys), facilitating virtual feedback sessions, coding qualitative data, and deriving relevant insights to inform product design.
• Use programming languages like R, Python, or SQL to access the division’s data assets and perform accurate and reliable data analyses; document results using shared practices of the division’s data platform.
• Build or advance skills in creating web‑based interactive tools and/or web content…